Flowers for the Bees

These past couple weeks we’ve been busy bees working to open our little retail outlet inside the Bee’s Knees Supply Co. We’ve been feverishly prepping this much anticipated new venture by sourcing interesting containers and vessels to house our flowers and plants, seeking products that blend with both our aestethic and our values, and working to create a cohesive story that works within the space it will live. The floors of the Bee’s Knees are reclaimed wood from an old cotton mill and many of the tables and fixtures had former purposes before being converting into merchandise surfaces. Because our studio is still our hub and our home, we wanted to make sure that our space within a space felt like it belonged, like it too was part of their brand. On top of sharing this magical new space with you, we thought it might be nice to recognize our flying friends with some flowers you can plant that will attract these hard working pollinators.-the Ladies of Forêt

Read and see more after the jump!

The studio’s been massed out with gorgeous blooms that evoke the spring and summer months. Scabiosa, ranunculus, jasmine, lilacs, feverfew, ginestra and garden roses just to name a few!

Our canvas, a barn board wall, set the stage for us to begin bringing life into the store. Using an old cart, some shelves and pipe flange we sought to transform the space with quince branches, forsythia, pedestals of staghorns and of course, floral bouquets! Our signature wrap of burlap snugly holds these fieldy bundles together.

Quince branches decorate the space, welcoming the buds that are about to appear up here in New England.

To welcome the bees into your garden, plant flowers and herbs like columbine, echinacea, sedum, roses, and borage. Planting a larger variety of florals will amass more bees and wildlife.Not only do bees love Borage, a flowering herb, human do too– as they are edible! They can be used in salads, lemonade and even candied for a sweet treat.

Echinacea (or Coneflower) is also a great bee attractor, and there’s dozens of varieties and hybrids. They’re a rugged flora that survive in both full sun or partial shade. They bloom from June to September and work great as fresh cut blooms or dried flowers.

The space looks beautiful! My husband is recently really (really) interested in bee keeping, but I don’t know if it’s a great idea in our city sized backyard. Maybe we can compromise and just entertain a few with some flowers they can’t resist. Thanks for the inspiration!

What a gorgeous shop. I have a small garden and try to plant bee friendly flowers as well as flowers that have a beautiful sent. I love the Qunice blossom. Very inspiring, can’t wait to get in the garden now!

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